USAAF Display : P-51D Pilot, 353rd FG, Raydon, April 1945

[Blue Leader]

 

Here's a still life evoking a pilot P-51D of the 353rd Fighter Group of the 8th Air Force.
The dress is typical of the year 1945 with the arrival of the B-15 flying jacket and the widespread wearing of G-suit.
It consists of a standard uniform of the U.S. Army, Officer OD shirt and pants, standard army shoes, B-4 life preserver, RAF late Type C flying helmet fitted with ANB-H-1 receivers, A-14 oxygen mask with a T-44 microphone, B-8 flying goggles, B-3A gloves, B-15 flying jacket and G-3 web type anti-G suit.
Only the B-8 parachute is not present.

 

Mathieu

[doinworkinvans]

Man she is a thing of beauty!!!

[Terry K.]

Nice!

[Waltz41]

Love it!

[mr_lits]

Man!!! You have some seriously clean examples!!

[littlebuddy]

This is the USAAF eqivalent of a centrefold from playboy !!!!

[Sabrejet]

Formidable!

[Cary91]

Question... what style of boots are those? I am relatively new to the USAAF realm, though have been collecting infantry for some time, they appeared at first to be rough outs, until I noticed the toe cap.

-Cary

[Sabrejet]

You are correct. Limited numbers of rough-outs were actually made with toe-caps.

[Sabrejet]

Previously posted by Johan Willaert.

 

[Gregory]

Super-duper.

 

I like those anti-G trousers.

 

 

[Bebel]

Well done, Matthieu!

 

Franck

[Cary91]

You are correct. Limited numbers of rough-outs were actually made with toe-caps.

Interesting never knew this.

Cary

[ThompsonSavage]

The first pattern roughout shoes with 4 rivets had a toe cap, same with the roughout safety shoes and hob riveted roughout shoes.
The later roughout shoes with 2 and 0 rivets did not have a toe cap.

 

Some early DB boots also had a toe cap

[cricket]

Nice anti-g's, that ensemble would look fantastic on a mannequin.

[airborneaviator]

Wow, very nice!

[JDK]

Nice display! The B-15 looks to be in great shape!

 

JD

[Blue Leader]

I continu with an another famous pilot of this FG, Col. Glenn E. Duncan (19.5 aerial victories) CO of the 353rd FG between July 1944 and April 1945. The photo below shows him in front of his P-51D 44-73060 LH-X "Dove of Peace VIII."
The outfit is unique because it consists of a B-13 flying jacket (here with Lt. Colonel rank shoulder insignia) worn with pants and a scarf cut from a camouflaged parachute (not found in my stuff).
Other flight equipment are a B-4 Mae West, a Type C pattern 43 flying helmet provided with ANB-H-1 receivers, an A-14 oxygen mask with T-44 microphone and AN-6530 flying goggles. The B-3A gloves are absent (not found in my stuff also).

 

 

[Sabrejet]

Bravo!

[BlueBookGuy]

Hi Mathieu,

my compliments for a formidable work. I'm in the Forum since just a few days, and it would be a matter of many weeks in order simply to enjoy so much the various things put together by so many passionated collectors.

But, such displays like yours are both flawless as in correct timeframe, and splendid in conditions... and that G-3 pants make me somehow jealous (NOT a bit...), I with difficulty got a G-3A many years ago but that didn't see any action in WW2 I believe (standardized in March 1945).

 

Thanks again!!

Franco.

[littlebuddy]

Mathieu , at last !! im nearly able to replicate that set up !!

 

Great stuff once again !!

 

 

Carl

[Waltz41]

That's my hope someday...love to set up a standard P-51 ETO and PTO pilot display. Great work here, I will definitley be looking at posts like this for info!

[littlebuddy]

I continu with an another famous pilot of this FG, Col. Glenn E. Duncan (19.5 aerial victories) CO of the 353rd FG between July 1944 and April 1945. The photo below shows him in front of his P-51D 44-73060 LH-X "Dove of Peace VIII."

The outfit is unique because it consists of a B-13 flying jacket (here with Lt. Colonel rank shoulder insignia) worn with pants and a scarf cut from a camouflaged parachute (not found in my stuff).

Other flight equipment are a B-4 Mae West, a Type C pattern 43 flying helmet provided with ANB-H-1 receivers, an A-14 oxygen mask with T-44 microphone and AN-6530 flying goggles. The B-3A gloves are absent (not found in my stuff also).

 

 

Mathieu ,could you please explain the headset wiring assembly , im seeing a RAF bell type plug that is being linked to the PL354 plug , would this have connected to the aircrafts radio equipment as is , or would there have been another adaptor ??

 

Carl

[BlueBookGuy]

Hello LB,

this is one of the most classic comm. setups you could put on a ETO fighter pilot from the 8th or 9th Air Forces,

A US-made Western Electric T-44 (or T-44A) microphone was wired to a RAF-style harness, ending with the bell-shaped male plug for the typical British radio sets - USAAF fighter types operating from England were subjected to many changes and modifications in order to have compatibility with different (but urgently needed) sets other than US-made.

Assembly was made by:

* MC-253A magnetic microphone

* M-369 microphone cover

* CO-287 woven cloth cord

* PL-179 bell-shaped plug

* JK-26 female plug

 

The PL-179 plug connected directly into the aircraft, without any more adapters.

[littlebuddy]

Could you explain to me where this adaptor would have been used then Franco ? I would have thought that the RAF type bell plug wouldn't have fitted in the aaf aircraft ?

 

LB